


Hear No Evil

by sky_blue_hightops



Series: The Three Evils [2]
Category: Video Blogging RPF, jacksepticeye
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Deaf Character, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Major Character Injury, The Three Evils AU, Well - Freeform, Whump, origins of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-26
Updated: 2019-01-26
Packaged: 2019-10-14 09:27:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17505995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sky_blue_hightops/pseuds/sky_blue_hightops
Summary: Guilt was perhaps the most dangerous motivator, and by no means was Marvin immune.(AU: JJ becomes mute, Marvin becomes deaf, and Jackie becomes blind.)





	Hear No Evil

**Author's Note:**

> Part 2 of our The Three Evils AU! This time it's Marvin's story.  
> Find art and more for it on tumblr: the-three-evils.tumblr.com

Staticky murmuring rang around the corner, both so inaudible Marvin had to strain his ears to hear and so loud it felt as if the soundwaves encroached from all sides. A chill ran down his spine, a chill almost as cold as the pitch of the voice's giggles. The hair on the back of his neck and his arms stood on end.

His reason for pursuing the monster in the first place was no comfort. Guilt had driven him to seek out the glitch that had stolen JJ’s voice, guilt born from broken promises and the absence of words, a guilt that clung to the skin of his hands like blood that could never be washed away. Guilt from the responsibility of the secrets JJ had betrayed to him, in the silence of the night and under the watching eyes of a monster and far too many stars. _Silence._ The word weighed heavy on the edges of his mind, in such a way that his idle mind gravitated to the concept like hungry waves lapping at the shoreline. His brother’s loss opened a raw wound in his own mind, a hole only filled by _revenge_ \- but was it really revenge if such a fight had been a long time coming?   
  
The magician forced himself back to the present; a lack of focus would prove fatal in the situation to come. He tuned his ears towards the figure just around the corner. The murmuring rose and fell in volume, but no matter how loud it got Marvin couldn't pick out discernible words. But the voice, oh the voice. He knew that voice from the rumble of its lowest registers to the shriek of its highest. It had clung to the edges of his dreams like a _leech_ hungry for blood, and hungry for blood it was.   
  
"-an̴d ̕I͢'̨m sure ҉my̶ ҉li̛tţl͠e _͢a͢ud̢i̡en͡ce̶_ w͘o͟ul̕d ͏love̶ to̷ h̴ear my̨ pla͠ņs͞,̶ ̡hm?̡" Marvin drew in a breath and plastered himself against the crumbling, damp rock of the abandoned cathedral, eyes wide and glowing faintly. "He͏r҉e, ̷k͠it͠ty̢ ̸k͟it͡ty. ̶I b͜ȩt̸ you͠'͢d ͏ju̢st̡ _̷l̴o͏ve̵_ t̛o̢ k͟now ̵w҉hat I ha̢v҉e i͏n s͞t͞ore҉,̢ Marv̡i͟n̷.̸ O͟nļy g͠oo͟d t͏ḩings͏, ͟o̴n̵ly g͜ood ͘th̶ings̷,̶ I ͜pr͞o̡mi̧se!" He couldn't see An- the figure anymore. He held that drawn-in breath, frozen with fear. Speaking would give him away but not speaking would incite anger-   
  
"N͞ot ͘to͟ w̕o̴r͏r͏y,͝ k͞i̸tt҉en̛. I'̵m alr͘ead҉y̶ _ang͡r͠y̡_ .̕ Yo̸u͢ cou҉l̶d҉ eve̷n̡ cal͘l̵ m̸e _f͟u͜r-_ iou̡s." A mock-offended gasp, rough on Marvin's ears. "I ҉s҉p͜e̸n̶d _̕so͢ ̡mu͠c͝h̨_ t̷i̛m̨e ̴th͞inking u̢p ̛littl͘e̴ ̕p̸la͞ns ͡a̶nḑ pl͡o͘ts f͝o̧r͠ ̕yo҉ų ͡ąl̵l ͘to amuse͏ ̢yơur͝s̛elv͜es ̛wi҉th,͏ a҉nd h͘er̷e y̕o̴u ͢are ̶tr̡yin̛g͞ to ͡s̷p҉oil t̡hem!̷ Wha͢t ̴k̴in̸d͢ ͢of ̛fri̸e͟nd ͟a̛re͞ y̧o͡u, t̕hat y̵ou co͡ưld̸ ͜t̶a͡k͡ȩ ͘away f̕rom ͠th͘ei̴r _exp͜eri͢e͟n͢c̷e̢_ in such a̴ wąy...̨Your ̢d͝ea̵r͝ l͢it͘tl͟e͝ b̷ro̸ther ͢a̧l̴reąd̡y tri͡ed҉ ̧th̡a̴t, ̵buţ ̶now̸ h̸e͜'̷s ̢a little͘.͘.. _ou̢t ̵o͜f ͜sorts_ , wo̡ul͏d̸n'̨t y҉oų s͝a͏y?" A sharp clicking noise, probably meant to sound reprimanding. "I o̶u̧g͝h̕t t͡o͜ t͞e̶a̢c͡h͟ ͠you͘ ͝a le͡s̵s̨on̴, ̕yo͟u̡ ̛k͠n̨o̢w̨. ̨Gi͠v͏e you͡ a r͡em͘i͘nde͟r҉ o̧f͠ wh͝a҉t̴ ͞hąp̧pȩns͟ ̕when yoų ͜hear͜ ̡things̷ y͠ou ͜re̸a̴l͞l͠y̷, ͘rea̧lly͘ _̷s͏h͟o̷uld͞n͢'t.̕_ " The voice dropped with the last word, tone switching from taunting and condescending to sickeningly violent in the time it took Marvin to glance around the pillar.   
  
The open area under the high ceilings of the cathedral rang quiet, not even a shadow moving against the grey of the unlit walls. Terror-turned-nausea coiled deep in Marvin's gut, despite having faced the glitch before. And he was a glitch, wasn't he? An anomaly, a violent, fatal one at that. A terrifying anomaly that wanted chaos, and blood, and revenge for transgressions imagined but never carried through. A glitch that ruled by fear, and ruled from fear.   
  
"T̴h̶i̛n͢k̵ ҉yo͏u̵'͝v̕e g̡o͘t҉ me ̷al̵l fi͡gur͢e̷d̨ ͡o͜uţ, ̧dǫn̶'̛t ̕yo͘u, ͡kitt̛en.͝ ̵Y͝o̧u ̕think ͜y҉ou _k͞no͝w.͜_ " A grating laugh, accompanied with bursts of static - Marvin grimaced and fell to a knee, hands clamped over his ears. "Your m͝ag͢i̵c҉ cąn͡'͏t͢ help y͡o͘u no̧w,̢ m̵a͢ģi̛ci͢an͟. ̨I'͘m not f͏ro̵m t̢his ͘w̢orl͜d̴.͘"   
  
"N-Neither am I!" Marvin grit out. The bursts of static merged to one continuous, low whine, and he muffled a whimper. "I-I didn't h-hear anything!"   
  
Flashes of a crooked smile, flashes in green and red and every color in the universe filled his mind, as clear as if the glitch were standing right before him and smiling as if he wanted to tear Marvin to pieces. "Aw̶, tha͢t's ͏cu͜t͝e. B̛e̸gg͡i̛ng҉ n͢ow, ̛hu̶h?" The smile split to reveal too-sharp teeth. "Y̛o̡u҉ _do_ ̧k̶no̡w ho҉w ̧m̵uc̕h I lov͘e̴ to ̨hear̨ you ̷b̢eg̵.͜"   
  
Marvin was close to being on the floor in pain, tears dripping down his face and collecting against the clean paper of his mask. The pressure in his head built up until he had no conscious thought left. His panic mixed with his guilt - _flashes of a moonlit path, of blood in the water, of the labored breaths of his brother as they ran for their lives_ \- The pain cracked any walls he had left. The wretched dregs of self-hatred spilled from those cracks, fueling the fire raging behind his eyes - _where was Jameson? where was his brother? screams answered his unspoken questions and filled the JJ-shaped absence at his side, the absence_ he _had caused in his own blindness -_ "C̡an̡ y͜ou͝ s͢t̴i̡l҉l hea̵r̶ me, ̢k͢itte͟n?͡" It took every scrap of consciousness left in him to nod his head once. Half of him still floated in the memories of that night, the other half lost in the grey area between pain and numbness. "G̢oo͢ḑ," Anti purred. "I͞ want̶ m̵y ̶voi͘c͠e ͜ţo̷ ̸b͟e͜ ̸t̴he ͢last͡ ͝t̴hing ͞y̸ou̕ ̧h̷ea̵r҉ i̷n͝ ͜your pat̕het͢ic̡ ęx͝i̛st͝e͟n͞c̷e."   
  
Fingernails sharp like the pinpricks of regret caught the soft skin under his jawbone and tilted his chin up. He met Anti's eyes, his own blue-glowing-green meeting the purest electric of greens. "Don't ̸cros͏s m̷e a̵g͡a̛i͏n҉,͜ M͏arvin҉.̢ ͟I ̴th͞i͞n̶k͏ yo̶u̶ aņd y͝o̸u͢r͞ _b͝r͟o̴t͘her͜s_ f͘or̕get ̵y̧ơu͏ŗ ͝pl͞a̡ce ͢in̛ ̧al̛l̷ this̛.͏" Blood dripped from the crescent-shaped wounds under his chin and from his ears. "Y͝ou're͟ n͢oth̶in͘g b͟ųt _pąwns͢_ .̢ T͜he̕ ͠o͘nl҉y̛ çhoic͏e you g̛et -̕" He dropped Marvin's chin only to yank his head back up by the hair. "- ͠i̕s ͠w̕hich sid͟e ̛y͞o̶u͢'ll _̴d̸ie̵ for͞.̨_ "   
  
The pain burrowing into the sides of his head was near _unbearable_ . He gasped and cried out, but his voice was missing. His breaths were missing. He sobbed harder, and the trickle of wetness down his fingers and face was warm and sticky. Anti sounded very far away, now. Too far away. Couldn't he rest, yet? When would the pain end?   
  
If he screamed, he couldn't tell. If he cried, he couldn't hear it. The only thing he knew existed, in that one moment, in that one moment that might have been several billion or none at all, was the fire burning in his head and under his skin and wrapping itself around his fingers to _explode out of him-_   
  
He knew nothing, and felt nothing, and heard nothing, and breathed nothing.   
  
***

When he blinked open his eyes, there was a horrific taste in his mouth and a numbness he couldn't identify.   
  
Light shined from the window in Henrik's office. He knew the office well - he'd been here more times than Henrik would've liked, but Marvin had never cared much (what use was a body if you weren't going to break it a little?). Injuries meant mistakes and mistakes meant growth.   
  
He breathed in, and out, and wondered if he could learn from this mistake.   
  
The sunlight dripping in from the window warmed his face and hands. He sat up, and only mere echoes of pain replied. The bedsheet under him crinkled and and shifted, and the quilt over him slipped aside.   
  
In the corner, Henrik slept in his office chair. He looked rather uncomfortable, Marvin thought. _He must be pretty uncomfortable if he isn't even snoring like he usually does._ _  
_   
There were IV lines taped to the inside of his wrist, lines extending to machines he didn't quite recognize. They must've been those newer, silent ones Henrik had been raving about a week before. He stripped off the tape anyways, slipping out the IV with barely a wince.   
  
He swung his legs over the side of the bed, planting his feet on the ground with his back to the door. He heaved a sigh of relief, wiggling his toes in the short carpet. He wondered what had happened, after... He winced. Only thinking about the incident brought back flashes of pain so intense it felt an awful lot like being back in that dingy old cathedral again, sobbing and bleeding and _powerless_ .   
  
" _Y̴ou'r͡e ҉nothiņg but͠_ pa͝w̡nş."   
  
The chill from before crept up his spine. Words came flashing back.   
  
" _You͠r͏ ̧m͟ag̶ic can't ̸h̴e͏lp ̴y͘ou n͢ow,̶ ͝m̛a͟g̷ic͜ian͡.̕_ "   
  
" _̕I ͘o͜ugh͝t to͞ ͡t҉eac͢h ͢y̛ou ̸a̕ ͜le҉sson,͞ yo̢u͢ k͢now.҉"_ "   
  
" I͡ w̴a̸nt m͢y ͡voic͠e to ̵be҉ ͟t͟h̷e ͘last͟ th̴in͏g y͝o͠u̸ he̵ąr̴ i̴n ͡yo̸u͜r pa͠t̛hetic͠ ̧e͞x͢iste̢nc͜e.͢ "   
  
The chill creeping up his back made him shiver violently. He had taken as a death threat, at first. He'd barely understood the words in the first place, already out of his mind with pain.   
  
A hand landed on his shoulder. He startled, twisting to meet Chase's soft blue eyes. If he whispered Chase's name, he couldn't hear it. If Chase whispered his, he couldn't hear it.   
  
If he cried, he couldn't hear it.


End file.
